Target
by HopefulButterfly123
Summary: Naruto has a perfect life. He is a shinobi prodigy and his father is the Hokage. His life was easy going until his father's enemy's targeted him to get to Minato. What will happen? Read to find out (This story is now on Hiatus because of lost of interest and inspiration. Up for adoption. I may continue it later on when I feel like. it. PM me if you wish to adopt this story.)
1. Prologue

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Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto franchise.**

_Narrator's POV_

"Can you believe it!? I'm going to be a mother!" Kushina said excitedly. Minato looked shocked. He was thinking 'a baby?'

"I'm going to be a father!" He said excited and a little surprised.

"I'm going to be a mother!" Kushina said again.

"A father!" Minato said. They then went into a warm embrace. Kushina Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze were going to have a baby boy. Minato discussed it with his sensei, Jiraiya and he and Kushina chose a name for their baby boy.

"Naruto." Minato and Kushina said at the same time in a satisfied tone. Minato looked at Kushina and she gave him a nod.

"Jiraiya sensei. We have discussed it and would like you to be the godfather of our child." Minato told Jiraiya. Jiraiya smiled and accepted. He always felt like Minato was family. Being the godfather of the child he thought was family warmed his heart.

"So when's your due date Kushina?" Jiraiya asked, eager to know when he could officially spend time with his godson.

"My due date is set for October 10th." Kushina replied happily. She was just imagining what their lives would be like with their son. Seeing his closet friends like this made Minato smile. He knew he had to go back to work as soon as he was done here. But just seeing them this excited was cheering him up. The Hokage did have responsibilities that they had to uphold. But he was given leave of absence during Kushina's birth by the village elders. At least he would be there to see his son's birth. Minato kissed Kushina on the lips before using his flying thunder god jutsu to teleport himself to the Hokage tower.

About eight months later, Kushina went into labor on October 10th. Minato was by her side the entire time. After hours of pushing and screaming, Naruto was born. Kushina calmed down a little after he was out. Minato happily cut the umbilical cord and held his newborn son. He smiled. _"Naruto Namikaze."_ He said to himself. He smiled as his newborn son calmed down and went to sleep in his arms. He gave Naruto to Kushina so she would be able to hold her son as well. She gladly took him. She cradled him in her arms. She smiled as Naruto was sleeping soundly in her arms.

"This is our baby boy. Naruto." She said happily as she fell asleep.

"Welcome to this world Naruto." Minato said as he picked Naruto up and cradled him a little longer before he to fell asleep in the hospital chair.

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**A/N This chapter has been Beta-ed by RavensDescendant. Special thanks to him/her for taking the time to Beta this story.**


	2. 1 Kids 2 The Academy

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Chapter 1: Kids

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Narrator's POV_

"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted from behind. "Please wait for me!" He shouted. Naruto came to a stop so he would be able to catch up.

"Come on Sasuke. Could you be any slower?" Naruto said to him playfully as he came up to him and started to breath heavily. He then punched Naruto in the arm. "What was that for!?" Naruto yelled at him. He then started laughing hysterically. Naruto started to laugh as well.

Naruto and Sasuke were best friends. They had a bond that no one could break. Sasuke might be a year older than Naruto, but they've known each other since they were babies and have been friends since.

Kushina shook her head. _"Can these kids be any more energetic?"_ She thought to herself. She was sitting in a chair on their porch. Minato walked up behind Kushina and put a hand on her shoulder.

"That's our kid alright." He said with laughter as he watched the two children laugh together in the yard. Kushina nodded.

"That's definitely our kid." She said.

"Okay I have to go to work now. Take care of those two." He said as he nodded towards the two kids who were now on the ground laughing.

"I will." Kushina said as Minato leaned in for a kiss. Minato turned into a flash of yellow and was gone. _"His flying thunder god jutsu. Can't he walk like everyone else?"_ She said shaking her head. She looked back at the boys who were up and running. Kushina just chuckled to herself. _"Just wait until they get older and join the ninja academy."_

"Okay boys! It's time for lunch!" Kushina yelled out to the boys. Naruto ran in at lightning speed while Sasuke ran in at a substantially slower pace. The boys sat down at the table and started talking to each other about the ninja academy between eating their bowls of ramen.

_"Naruto's only four. Is he really ready to go to the academy next year?"_ Kushina asked herself a little worried. Most ninja go to the academy at age 6. Sasuke is turning 6 next year and won't have as much time to play with Naruto when he enters the academy. That's why Naruto wants to enter the academy a year early.

Kushina was lost in her thoughts when she noticed that Naruto and Sasuke weren't at the table anymore. She jumped up and looked around. She heard yelling outside in the backyard and went over there. She saw Naruto and Sasuke playing tag. Naruto was winning. Sasuke could barely catch up. Naruto would let Sasuke catch him a few times but would immediately tag Sasuke back.

Sasuke might be a year older than Naruto, but Naruto was much faster. You could barely see him. _"Just wait until 'he' gets older."_ Kushina thought to herself. She giggled and went back inside, letting the boys do their thing.

Chapter 2: The Academy

_Naruto's POV_

It's been exactly one year and Sasuke and I are joining the ninja academy today. I was getting ready at my house while Sasuke was getting ready at his. For the past year, we have been sparring and training to get ready for the academy. I was about to leave the house for the welcome ceremony when I was stopped by dad.

"Hey there kiddo." Dad said with a smile on his face as he ruffled my hair.

"Hi dad." I said annoyed. I didn't like it when people messed with his hair. I shooed his hand away and ran out the door. I turned around and waved to him. "Bye dad! I'm going to the ninja academy!" I said excitedly. Dad just smiled.

I raced through the village to Sasuke's house. We had agreed to meet there before heading to the academy together. I got there in 5 minutes. Sasuke was already waiting for me. We left as soon as I got there. We quickly headed over to the academy. When we arrived all the girls seemed to look at us.

"They're both so cute." I heard one of the girls say to her friends. This made me blush a little as Sasuke and I walked over to the front of where the stage was. We talked to each other for about ten minutes when my dad stepped onto the mini stage that was set up.

"Welcome to the ninja academy. My name is Minato Namikaze and I am the fourth Hokage. I am happy that so many of you have chosen to become ninja, but know that the road to becoming a ninja is not easy. Every ninja has his or her own path. I wish you all luck in your training to become great." My dad finished and gave me a wink. I smiled at him as he used his special jutsu to teleport himself to the Hokage tower. After he left a man with a scar across his nose and brown hair put up into a ponytail came up to the stage.

"My name is Iruka Umino and I am one of the Chunin instructors at this academy. You have all been assigned a homeroom class and we expect you all to be there right away. Respect your elder's while you are here.

We are happy to announce the official first day of the academy for the newcomers." With that Iruka left the stage and helped some Chunin seal the stage into a scroll for future use.

Sasuke and I were in the same homeroom, so we walked over there together. In the hall everyone was scurrying to their classrooms. We entered our classroom and we were the first to be there. Sasuke and I both took some seats next to each other in the front of the class.

As everyone filed in, the girls all looked at either me or Sasuke and started blushing. It was kinda weird for me. I didn't think girls were going to fawn over us.

After everyone found some appropriate seats a Jounin entered the room. Apparently our teacher is Iruka. "Okay let's get started on our first day. Today we will start with the basics. Who wants to explain what they already know about chakra?" I raised my hand as did Sasuke. We were the only ones in the class who raised our hands. The others were just talking amongst themselves.

Iruka looked at the two of us and shook his head at the rest of the class. "How about you, Naruto Namikaze?" He said with a bit of an irritated smile. I stood up to speak and noticed that every girl in the room was looking at me with interested looks. They were all blushing. It made me a little nervous but I pushed the feeling aside and started to explain what I knew about chakra.

"Chakra is the moulding of physical energy. It is present in every cell of the body and the spiritual energy gained from the mind. Once the chakra is moulded it can pass to any of the 361 chakra points in the body.

With hand seals we can release this chakra and do what would normally be impossible without chakra." I said in my most dignified tone. When I looked around the room I saw everyone looking at me funny. I wondered if I got it wrong. That was always what my mom and dad had told me about chakra. That's when I saw a genuine smile appear on Iruka-sensei's face.

"That was perfect Naruto. Perfect!" He said happily. He looked at the rest of the class and said, "I hope you were all listening to Naruto's speech about chakra. We will be having a test on it tomorrow so I hope you are all prepared." Iruka-sensei said with a smirk on his face. Everyone in the room seemed to have surprised and worried expressions.

_"Do these kids even know what chakra is?" _I asked myself. Other than Sasuke and me, everyone else seems to be clueless about chakra. I sat back down in my seat and Iruka continued the class.

After class Sasuke and I headed outside to eat our lunch together. We sat in the grass under a large tree. "So Sasuke, what do you think about the rest of the class?" I asked Sasuke. Sasuke finished a bite of his sandwich before speaking.

"I think most of them aren't that serious about becoming ninja's." Sasuke said.

"You said most Sasuke. Who else do you think is serious?" I asked Sasuke.

"You and me of course." Sasuke said as he giggled. I was looking at him like someone just hit me in the head.

"Oh. I thought you meant that there were others just as serious in our class besides the two of us." I told him, my face going back to normal.

"I don't see anyone who is as serious as us." Sasuke said finishing up his sandwich. I to finished my sandwich and we walked inside back to Iruka-sensei's classroom.

We sat back down in our original seats right before the bell rang. Kid's started filing back into the room. Iruka-sensei came in and we continued our lesson. We ended the day with a stack of homework. Sasuke and I didn't seem to mind, but everyone else sure did. They started complaining about the pile of homework while Sasuke and I packed up to leave. Before we left we overheard two girls talking about us.

"Hey Sakura? Who do you like better? Sasuke or Naruto?" Ino said blushing towards Naruto.

"I like both of them. They are both so cute. Especially Naruto, but he is a year younger than us. Although, seeing how he knows much more than we do, makes him cooler." Sakura said to Ino. She then kept muttering things to herself about both Sasuke and I. A smile appeared on my face. Sasuke and I left to go home. After a few minutes of walking we reached Sasuke's house.

"See you tomorrow Sasuke." I told Sasuke as I left his house. He waved and disappeared inside his house. I ran out of the Uchiha compound and ran to my house. Sure I didn't need to run but it feels so good to have the wind in my short spikey blond hair. I reached my house in no time at all. When I got there I saw mom already making dinner.

"Hi there sweetie." She said sweetly.

"Hi mom. What are you making for dinner?" I asked smelling the good smelling food on the stove.

"I'm making your favorite. Ramen. Oh and your father won't be able to make it for dinner. He got caught up in work." Kushina said returning to the stove to stir the pasta.

"That's fine. I know dad has a lot of work to do being Hokage and everything." I said understandingly. Mom just smiled.

"Come here." She said holding out her arms. I ran into them and hugged her. We finished our ramen and made small talk about my first day in the academy. I told her about how I defined chakra. How Sasuke didn't think anyone else was determined about being ninja's like we were. Mom just chuckled at this. "That sounds a lot like Sasuke."

"Okay mom. Thanks for the ramen! I have to get some homework done before school tomorrow." I said kissing her goodnight.

"Okay. I love you Naruto." I left the dining room and headed upstairs to my bedroom. I sat down to do my homework. It was so easy. I finished my homework and set it on my desk. I changed into my stripped pajamas and put on my little night hat. I crawled into bed and hugged my pillow as I drifted off to sleep.

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_Narrator's POV_

Hours after Naruto fell asleep, Minato returned home and found Kushina ready for him with a bowl of ramen. Minato kissed Kushina and ate the bowl of ramen quickly. After He finished his ramen he went up to Naruto's bedroom to find him sleeping away in his bed. Minato smiled and went over to the bed. He leaned over and kissed Naruto on the forehead.

"I'm so proud of you my son." He said before leaving. He shut the door behind him and went over to the master bedroom where Kushina was waiting. He laid down in bed and talked to Kushina about what Naruto had told her about the first day he had at the academy. They talked for another hour before they both finally went to sleep.

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**A/N Hey sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out. I wanted to make this a double chapter so it would be lined up properly with the numbers. The second reason is because I couldn't decide what point of view to write chapter 2 in.**

**Also my tablet doesn't have spell check on it and I'm too lazy to read my own work because I already know what I want it to say.**

**But all you writers out there know what I mean right? Well anyways I couldn't get to my computer until I was done skating for the day. So I apologize for the long wait and hope you enjoy my second story on fanfiction. You can follow me on Instagram. Username: Alison_Neumann**

**These chapters have been Beta-ed by RavensDescendant.**


	3. Genin

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Chapter 3: Genin

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Naruto's POV_

I woke up the next morning and looked at the clock. It read 6:00 a.m. This means that I only had an hour to get ready and head to the academy. For some reason I don't need an alarm to wake me up. I always had this one habit of waking up at exactly the right time.

I got out of my pajamas and changed into my usual orange jumpsuit. I went downstairs and breakfast was already made for me. I saw a note on the fridge.

-Naruto

I have made you breakfast and have kept it warm using a special jutsu. I have gone out on a mission and won't be back for a few days. Your father will be caught up in work for a while.

You can go to eat at Ichiraku Ramen if you like. We have some money in the drawer if you want to eat out. You can ask Sasuke if you can hang out over their house for a while.

When I come back I'll tell Mikoto that you can come back home. We're really sorry that We couldn't be there for your second day at the academy. I'll be back before you know it.

Love,

Mom

I took out a pen and started to write a note. It was kind of sloppy, but considering I'm only five it's pretty good.

-Mom and Dad

It's alright. I know you guys have a lot of work to do. You aren't missing much. I'll tell you all about it when you guys get back. I think I'm going to stay at Sasuke's if his mom and dad are okay with it. See you soon.

Love,

Naruto

I ate the breakfast mom had prepared for me and headed to the academy. I glanced at the clock. 6:40 a.m. I have 20 minutes to get there. _"Piece of cake."_ I thought to myself as I locked the door behind me. I ran straight over to the academy.

I made it 10 minutes before classes started. I just went straight into the classroom and sat down in my seat. I took out my books and pencils and was ready to go. Sasuke entered the room 5 minutes before the class started. He sat in the seat next to me. We were sitting in the same seats we were when we first started.

"Hey Naruto." Sasuke said in his cool way.

"Hi Sasuke." I said in the same cool way. "Hey Sasuke. Do you think I can stay over at your house for a little while? My mom is on a mission for a couple days and you know how my dad is around work." I said to Sasuke hoping that his family wasn't too busy to take me in for a few days.

"Sure. I'm 99.9% sure that my parents would have you stay over. They know how busy your parents are more than happy to oblige." Sasuke said happily.

"What about the other .1%?" I asked a little worried. Sasuke just grinned.

"I just wanted to see what your response would be if I said that. Turns out my guess was right. I'm actually 100% sure you'll be able to stay with us." He said turning back to the front of the room as Iruka-sensei walked in.

_"That's good."_ I thought to myself. I didn't really feel like staying at the house alone or going out to eat. I love Ichiraku Ramen but having i every night will make me fat and then I won't be able to operate as a ninja.

Iruka took attendance then collected the homework he handed out yesterday. Sasuke and I were first and Iruka-sensei smiled at us. He collected **most **of the other students' homework and frowned.

I got a little glimpse at the piece of homework on top. I saw drawings of kunai, leaf headbands, and other ninja stuff. I didn't see a single word on the paper except for the name. He went to the back of the room to collect the rest of the students' homework. Most of the kids just shrugged and made up excuses on why they didn't have their homework.

"Sorry Iruka-sensei but my dog at my homework." A student in the back said.

_"What a cliché. The old 'my dog at my homework' excuse." _I thought to myself as I rolled my eyes. Sasuke noticed and chuckled, but nobody seemed to notice. Iruka-sensei walked back up to the front of the room, put the collected homework on the desk, and got out the chakra test. He handed it out to everybody before returning back to the front of the class and explained the test.

"As you already know, as I told you all yesterday, that we are having a written test on chakra. You will have half an hour to complete the test. You can start." Iruka said and started to go over the homework.

I looked at the test, put my name on top, and started writing. I read the questions thoroughly and answered them easily. I already knew the basis of chakra and what it can be used for. So for me, the test was pretty easy. I bet it was pretty easy for Sasuke too. He knew just as much as I did about chakra.

I finished the test and looked up at the clock. There was exactly 5 minutes left. I used the last 5 minutes to go over the questions and my answers to check for any mistakes. I didn't find any so I turned my test over so no one could look at it. I sat in my chair silently and waited for the rest of the time to be over.

After waiting a few minutes Iruka said our time was up and went around collecting everybody's tests. He placed them on his desk and picked up another stack of papers. I'm guessing he already graded all the homework that was turned in. He handed them back to their respectful owners before returning to his desk.

I looked at my homework and a smile appeared on my face. I got an A+. Iruka-sensei ended the class and Sasuke and I headed out to lunch. We sat in our now usual spot under a tree outside. We talked about our grades and how easy the homework was. Sasuke also got an A+ as I knew he would. We finished our lunch and headed back to class before the bell rang. We sat back in our chairs and waited quietly when Iruka-sensei walked in.

"Okay class, this part of class will be outside." Iruka said as everyone did a little happy dance inside. We all headed out of the classroom after Iruka-sensei. We got outside and Iruka-sensei told us to form a circle. I joined the circle next to Sasuke. "Okay we are going to demonstrate our abilities to each other. I will call a student's name and the may demonstrate whatever they want." Iruka-sensei said looking down at his keyboard checking the first name.

"First up is Shino Aburame." The shinobi who must have been Shino walked into the middle of the circle. He was wearing a green coat that covered most of his face. He was wearing goggles and had his hands in his pockets.

He held out his hand and a ton of bugs came out from his sleeves. If I wasn't so self-composed I would've cried out 'eww'. I know the Aburame clan specializes in insect based attacks but it still grosses me out. He walked back to his spot in the circle and Iruka-sensei called the next name.

"Next up is Shikamaru Nara."

The shinobi who walked out of the circle next was a boy with brown hair put into a ponytail. He also had his hands in his pockets. He stood there a few seconds before pulling his hands out of his pockets and formed a few signs. His shadow grew and attached itself to another shinobi's shadow.

"Shadow possession jutsu complete." Shikamaru said as he got up and demonstrated what he just did. He walked over to the shinobi he had apparently possessed and the shinobi did the same. Shikamaru did some actions as the shinobi did the exact same. His shadow resided and the other shinobi went back into the circle slightly afraid. Shikamaru put his hands back in his pockets and walked back to his spot in the circle. Iruka-sensei nodded slightly as he wrote something down on his clipboard.

He scanned the clipboard for the next name and said, "Next up is Sasuke Uchiha." When he said this all the girls seemed to perk up, while the guys seemed to be slightly annoyed at the Uchiha's popularity with the girls. Sasuke stepped into the middle of the circle.

"You all might want to step back a bit." He said pointing to a section of the circle. The part he pointed at quickly backed away and joined the rest of the class. Sasuke made a few hand signs that were quicker than the average human eye could see, but I was able to catch the hand signs and smirked at what Sasuke was going to do.

He put two fingers to his lips and his cheeks filled up with air. He released all the air in his cheeks in the form of blazing hot fire. It lasted a few moments before dispersing. Most of the other ninja had their jaws on the ground. Most Genin aren't able to use elemental jutsu because it takes up to much chakra. So of course they would be surprised. We are just academy students after all.

Sasuke's fireball was huge! When they see what I have planned they will be even more surprised than with Sasuke. Sasuke rejoined they group as Iruka-sensei collected himself and called the next name.

"Achem. Naruto Namikaze is next." Some of the girls gathered themselves enough to look at me with interesting eyes, while others still had their jaws on the ground.

I stepped in front of the class so they would all be able to see me. Since there was no longer a circle, I didn't have to ask anyone to step back.

I held out my right hand and formed a ball of pure chakra. I then manipulated my wind chakra to form the ball of pure chakra into a shuriken. I launched the shuriken into the ground, causing a big explosion, and forming a gigantic crater in the academy yard.

I crawled out of the crater and saw that everybody's jaw dropped well beyond when they saw what Sasuke could do. I walked back over to my classmates and waited for Iruka-sensei to respond. It took him much longer to collect himself, but he got it together.

"Okay class, that's all for today. Go home and rest." Iruka-sensei said turning back inside.

The class filed inside, packed up their stuff and went home. Sasuke and I were walking home together and reached the Uchiha district. We walked in and some shopkeepers complemented Sasuke and I on our day at the academy. Apparently everyone in the village knows about it. We reached Sasuke's house, and the moment I walked in, I knew Sasuke's mother, Mikoto was making ramen.

"Hello Naruto. Don't worry, your parents have already informed me that you might be staying over for a few days." Mikoto said.

Sasuke and I went upstairs to his room and he gathered some blankets and pillows for me. He set them down on the floor next to his bed and pulled out a mattress. We set up for the night and waited to be called down for dinner.

"Sasuke! Naruto! Dinner's ready!" Mikoto called from the kitchen.

Sasuke and I walked down the stairs to the dining room. I saw Mikoto laying down the final touches on the table as we sat down. I also saw Fugaku and Itachi at the table. Mikoto finished setting the table and sat down. We sat down as well and put our hands together.

"Thanks for the food!" Everyone at the table said. We all dug in and made small talk at the table. When we were finished eating Fugaku and Itachi moved to the couch to talk. Sasuke and I offered to help Mikoto with the dishes, but she refused. So we went upstairs to his bedroom. We talked a little bit before we finally went to sleep.

It's been seven years since I entered the academy. Not a lot has changed. Mom is almost always busy with missions and dad is almost always busy being Hokage. It is an exciting day for everyone who entered the academy today.

Why? Because it's the day of the Genin exams. Those who pass will be able to join three man squads and go on missions. Those who fail will have to stay in the academy and wait another year before retaking the test. I got dressed in my usual orange and blue jumpsuit and walked downstairs where breakfast was waiting.

_"Mom always likes to do this." _I thought while looking at the food. I found the note and read it.

-Naruto

By now I'm guessing you already know what is keeping your breakfast warm and how to break the jutsu. Good luck on your Genin exam today. Tell Sasuke I wish him luck as well. I'm hoping to be back by tonight. Your father will make it tonight as well and then we will celebrate.

Love,

Mom

I ate my breakfast and headed out the door. I locked it behind me and headed off to the academy.

When I got there, there was already many shinobi waiting excitedly for the test. I walked into the classroom and saw Sasuke sitting at his seat waiting patiently for the test to start. I walked over to my desk, which was still next to Sasuke's.

We talked for a bit about what we could be tested on. Iruka-sensei walked in shortly after with his handy-dandy clipboard. Everyone besides Sasuke and I were all running around excitedly, except for two people in the back of the class.

One was a girl who was sitting quietly with her hands in her lap. Her hair was black and went down to about her shoulders. Her eyes were white and looked a little dull. I've never noticed her before.

The other was a boy with brown hair that went down past his shoulder blades. He had a type of light brown headband covering his forehead. He also had white dull eyes. He seemed to be annoyed at everybody else.

"Okay. We'll start with Choji Akimichi." Iruka-sensei said as Choji followed him out the room. After a while Sasuke's name was called.

There were only two students left, including myself, who still haven't been tested. Sasuke came back about ten minutes later when Iruka-sensei called a girl's name. "Hinata Hyuga, you're up next."

The girl stood up and I noticed it was the same girl who had the dull white eyes. She walked out of the room with Iruka-sensei and came back ten minutes later like everyone else.

"Naruto Namikaze, your next." Iruka-sensei said as I followed him out the room while the other students just talked among themselves about how well they think they did on the test.

Iruka-sensei led us to a small room next to the class we had just left. Iruka-sensei sat down next to two other teachers. One of the teachers had white hair. The other shinobi was a bit chubby and had short brown hair. "Okay Naruto, to start your test we would like you to perform the cloning jutsu."

"Excuse me Iruka-sensei, but could I do the shadow clone jutsu instead?" I asked. Iruka-sensei and the other Chunin teachers looked at one another in shock.

"Um sure as long as it's a cloning jutsu." Iruka-sensei said putting his hands on the desk waiting expectantly.

I put my hands in a hand sign and said, "Shadow clone jutsu!" At that moment puffs of white smoke appeared and disappeared, revealing as many other Naruto's as the room could hold. All the teachers looked at me in shock and astonishment.

After performing the cloning jutsu, substitution jutsu, and the transformation jutsu, I walked back to the classroom as the teachers talked among themselves deciding who they would pass. I sat back in the class. Everyone still seemed to be very excited. I noticed that Sakura and Ino were staring at me with love filled eyes.

Iruka-sensei walked back into the class and everyone settled down a bit waiting expectantly to be told they passed the test.

"These are the students who have passed the Genin test." Iruka-sensei said as everyone seemed to lean in closer.

"Naruto Namikaze, Sasuke Uchiha, Neji Hyuga, Hinata Hyuga, Shikamaru Nara, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi, Rock Lee, Tenten, Shino Aburame, and Kiba Inuzuka." Iruka-sensei said.

He said a few more names but this was all I was focusing on. A lot of the other students started to look upset. I'm guessing that they didn't pass. "You can pick up your leaf headbands up at the front desk."

Everyone who passed walked up to the desk and picked up a headband. They all tied it in various places. Some on the standard forehead spot, others on the arm, some on a leg, and a few around the neck. Although there was one person who stood out. Her headband was being used to hold back her light pink hair. The students who didn't pass walked out of the room.

"Okay. Now I will assign you all into three man squads. Squad one will be Neji Hyuga, Rock Lee, and Tenten." Iruka-sensei said as a student with shaggy black hair, big eyebrows, and a white outfit jumped up and down.

"Neji shall be a perfect rival!" The shinobi shouted. Iruka-sensei started again.

"Squad two will be Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, and Choji Akimichi. Squad three is Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Shino Aburame." Iruka-sensei said and formed a few more squads before I listened in again.

"Squad seven is Naruto Namikaze, Hinata Hyuga, and Kiba Inuzuka." A boy with markings on his face and a small white dog stood up abruptly.

"Why do I have to be on his team!" The boy shouted as he pointed at me. Iruka-sensei just rolled his eyes.

"You had the lowest scores in the class, so to make a well balanced squad we placed the highest score with the lowest score." Iruka-sensei said annoyed. The boy just sat down and pouted. "Now you will know who your Jounin sensei's' will be. Squad one has Might Guy, Two has Asuma Sarutobi, Three has Kurenai Yuhi... and squad seven has Kakashi Hatake." Iruka-sensei said. "They shall be here shortly." He left the room and left the students to talk with their new squad.

The first Jounin to walk in was a man in a green outfit with his leaf headband around his waist. His hair was black and seemed to cling to his head. He was very hyper and seemed to talk a lot of 'the power of youth'. He left with Neji, Lee, and Tenten.

The next Jounin who came in was a woman wearing white clothing that looked like a rose. It had the spikes and she had red eyes. Kind of like Sasuke's sharingan. She wore her headband on her forehead. She left with Sakura, Sasuke, and Shino.

More Jounin came in and left with their respectable Genin. Now the only ones left waiting for their Jounin sensei was Hinata, Kiba, and I. We waited for about another hour before someone opened the door.

A man with silver white hair and a mask hiding his face. The only facial feature that you could see was his right eye. My dad had told me about his student. I think his story is sad but I don't want to pity him. He is my superior. Kiba shot up.

"Where have you been! It's been hours!" Kiba shouted. Obviously he was bored waiting.

"I'm sorry but I was busy with stuff." Kakashi said with an eye smile. Kiba settled down a little but was still very irritated. Kakashi-sensei motioned for us to follow. Kiba quickly got up and ran after him. Hinata and I slowly got up and followed.

He led us to the roof where we sat down while he stood up and looked down at us. "Let's start with introductions, shall we? State your name, your dreams, likes, dislikes, and any hobbies you might have. Let's start with the hyperactive one." Kakashi-sensei said as he pointed to Kiba.

"Excuse me sensei? Shouldn't you go first. As an example?" Hinata said quietly. Kakashi looked at her with his one eye and gave in.

"My name is Kakashi Hatake. My dreams are none of your business. My likes are none of your business. My dislikes are also none of your business, and my hobbies are also none of your business." Kakashi-sensei said. All of us seem to have sweat dropped.

The only thing we seemed to learn was his name. Although we already knew what his name was. I have learned something by his answer. He doesn't like to talk about himself. "Okay you can go now." He said as he pointed to Kiba.

"My name is Kiba Inuzuka of the Inuzuka clan. My dream is to be the next Hokage. I like my dog Akamaru. Dislikes are snotty people. My hobbies are hanging with Akamaru." Kiba said with pride. Kakashi-sensei pointed to the girl next.

"My name is Hinata Hyuga of the Hyuga clan. My dream is to be strong like my father and kind like my mother. I love my family and don't dislike anything at the moment. My hobbies are training with my father." Hinata said. Kakashi-sensei then turned his head towards me and I began.

"My name is Naruto Namikaze of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans. My dream is to become the strongest Hokage like my father. I like training and hanging out with my friend Sasuke. I don't dislike a lot of things at the moment. I currently don't have any hobbies." I said. Kakashi-sensei absorbed all the information given to him.

"Okay let's take our first mission." Kakashi-sensei said. Kiba seemed to be very excited.

"What rank mission!? Can it be a C or B rank!?" Kiba shouted.

"No. Like every other shinobi we will start with D ranks and work our way up." Kakashi-sensei said as he walked down the stairs from the roof. We followed with an upset Kiba in tow.

We reached the mission table in the Hokage tower. Many other squads were leaving with their mission scrolls. Even though Kakashi-sensei was an hour late, squads were still leaving the Hokage tower. Perhaps they trained a little before taking a mission.

Kakashi-sensei walked up to the mission table and asked for a D-rank mission. The person behind the desk was Iruka-sensei. He pulled out a few scrolls and asked Kakashi-sensei what type of mission he would like.

After a few moments thoughts he chose a scroll, wrote something down in Iruka-sensei's clipboard, and walked back over to us. He handed me the scroll and said,

"You're team leader. I'm going to my apartment for a while. After your mission come back here and return the scroll with the signature from the person who requested this mission.

Then you may all go home and meet me here tomorrow at 11:00 a.m." Kakashi-sensei said as he walked away with his hands in his pockets.

I opened the scroll and read its contents. Our mission was to return a cat named Tora with a red bow.

"Okay. So our mission is to return a cat named Tora with a red bow to her owner. The cat..." I was cut off by Kiba as he said,

"Okay let's go get this cat! This mission is going to be easy." He shouted as he ran out the door. I looked over at Hinata and she was giggling. I finished my sentence and she giggled even more.

"As I was saying, the cat has evaded many Genin shinobi and injured around 7 who tried to return her to the owner. This will not be as easy as Kiba thinks." I said as Hinata and I walked out of the tower to complete our mission.

* * *

**A/N I'm so sorry for the long wait on this chapter. It took forever to write out.**


	4. Missions

Target

Chapter 4: Missions

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Naruto's POV_

Hinata and I walked out of the Hokage tower and saw an anxious looking Kiba. Kiba ran up to us and said,

"Where do we start looking exactly?" He said. Hinata just giggled. I rolled my eyes and spoke.

"We should start looking where Tora was seen last." I replied.

"Alright let's go!" He said as he ran away again. He came back and asked, "Where would that be?" This made Hinata giggle even more.

"Tora was last seen in an alley near Ichiraku Ramen." I said.

"Okay. Let's go. Come on Akamaru!" Akamaru barked a yes in reply and the twosome headed off towards Ichiraku Ramen. I motioned for Hinata to follow me and she stopped giggling. We started jogging after Kiba.

When we reached Kiba he was wrestling with a very feisty cat with a red bow. I can only assume the cat was Tora. Tora seemed to have made many attacks on Kiba with a barking Akamaru at hand. Tora swiped at Akamaru and Akamaru whimpered and fell to the ground.

"Akamaru!" Yelled an angry Kiba as he watched his dog lay on the ground. Tora took this as a chance and swiped Kiba in the eyes. Kiba cried in pain and dropped Tora, who ran away as fast as her tiny legs could carry her. I walked over to Kiba and held him up by putting one of his arms over my shoulder.

"Hinata. Please follow Tora and use your charm to convince Tora we mean no harm. Then please bring her over to the Hokage tower and wait for me." I said to Hinata. She nodded and ran after Tora.

I helped Kiba walk and led him to the hospital. _"Hospitalized by a cat. Pathetic."_ I thought to myself as we entered the hospital. I told the nurses what had happened and they led Kiba to a room. After I dropped Kiba off at the hospital I went in the direction of the Hokage Tower.

When I reached the tower I saw Hinata holding a cat with a red bow. I smiled as she cuddled the cat.

"Okay. Let's go in and finish our mission." Hinata nodded and followed me inside. We walked up to the mission desk and I handed Iruka-sensei our mission scroll. He took it and read its contents.

"Where's your clients signature?" Iruka-sensei asked.

"We were never told where the owner could be found. I was hoping that you could contact the owner and when she gets here she can sign our mission scroll." I replied. Iruka-sensei nodded and asked a Chunin to contact Tora's owner.

When the owner got here she ran up to Hinata, who gave Tora to the chubby woman and squeezed Tora like there was no tomorrow. Tora's fur seemed to stand on end as the life was being squeezed from her.

She signed our mission scroll and left the building with the angry Tora. Iruka-sensei took our mission scroll and signed it off before asking,

"Where's Kiba?"

"He was hospitalized." I replied as I turned and headed for the door. Hinata followed and we exited the Hokage tower together. "Well Hinata, I guess I'll see you tomorrow at 11:00 a.m." I said.

"Okay Naruto. See you then." She said as she headed off towards the Hyuga compound. I walked towards my house when I saw Sasuke running towards me with a very excited look on his face.

"What are you so happy about Sasuke." I said as I continued walking as he caught up to me.

"My Jounin sensei is awesome!" He said. I've never really heard him praise someone before.

"Your Jounin sensei is Kurenai Yuhi, the genjutsu master, correct?" I asked. Sasuke nodded. "So let me guess." I said as I put my hand on my chin in a thinking position. "She's teaching you how to use the sharingan for genjutsu. He nodded. "So that's why you're happy. You've always wanted to learn genjutsu."

"Yeah. She's a master at it. She even knows how to counter a genjutsu with her own." He replied returning back to the Sasuke I know. We reached my house and when we entered I heard a big 'SURPRISE'!

I closed the door behind me and saw mom and dad in the dining room wearing party hats and a banner that said 'Congratulations' above their heads. I smiled. I haven't seen dad in forever.

I went over and hugged him. Then I hugged mom. I saw ramen on the table and my smile widened. We all sat down at the table and said, 'Thanks for the food!' We all dug in and when we finished Sasuke left and I helped mom and dad wash the dishes.

When we finished the dishes we all talked a bit about my first mission. They laughed at the fact that a teammate of mine was hospitalized on a D-rank mission. After a while of talking we all went to bed.

The next morning I woke up at 9:00 a.m. I had two hours until our meeting with Kakashi. I went downstairs and found breakfast and a note.

-Naruto

Have a nice day. I love you and am on a long term mission. Your father is busy again so Mikoto said you could stay over with Sasuke until I returned.

Love,

Mom

I ate breakfast and went out the door. I locked the door behind me and walked towards the gates of the leaf village. I walked slowly so I arrived exactly at 11:00 a.m. I already saw Hinata, Kiba, and Kakashi waiting for me.

"Right on time I see." Kakashi-sensei said. As I reached them I saw Kiba scoff as he got off of the ground and walked over. Hinata just stood where she was. "We will be taking our first C-rank mission today."

"Why can't we have a B or an A-rank mission!?" Kiba said irritated.

"You should consider yourself lucky that we are even taking a C-rank mission, but I don't want to hold back Naruto and Hinata because you can't reach their level. Have you forgotten that you were hospitalized on a simple D-rank mission?" Kakashi-sensei said, getting annoyed at Kiba. Akamaru barked in embarrassment as we all heard Kiba mutter,

"But I was caught off guard. I only had to where those stupid bandages over my eyes for 5 hours."

Kakashi-sensei led us out the gate as he explained our mission. "Our mission is to escort a bridge builder to the land of waves." Kakashi-sensei said.

After a while we met the bridge builder, Tazuna, and continued our journey to the land of waves. From all the muttering you could hear from Tazuna, you could easily see he was doubting our ability to keep him safe. More precisely, Kiba.

After some time I noticed a puddle in the middle of the path. I thought it was odd seeing how it hasn't rained in quite some time. That's when I knew it was a trap set for someone. Namely us. I looked over at my other teammates and they seemed to have not noticed it. The only one who looked like he did was Kakashi-sensei.

When we walked past the puddle, two ninja popped out of it. Their faces were covered with masks of different shades of gray. Each was holding part of a weapon. It had two shuriken on both ends connected with a chain.

One of the ninja threw their shuriken at us Genin. I jumped out of the way as the chain wrapped around Hinata, Kiba, and Tazuna to a tree. Akamaru jumped off from Kiba's head and ran into a bush to hide.

"Naruto, free the others and get them out of here!" Kakashi-sensei said as he engaged in battle. I followed his orders as I ran over to the others while Kiba struggled against the chain. I saw a little blood on Kiba and realized that the chain had spikes. Probably tipped with poison.

"Kiba you idiot! Stop struggling!" I yelled at him as I unwrapped the weapon.

"Jut untie me!" He shouted. I finished untying them from the tree and Kiba instantly joined the battle with Kakashi-sensei. He didn't last long as one of the ninja hit him over the head and he collapsed.

Hinata stood by Tazuna to make sure he was safe. I ran over to Kiba to see if the chain really was tipped with poison.

_"Just our luck. The idiot was poisoned."_ I thought to myself as I treated to his cuts.

After I finished with Kiba I ran over to help Kakashi-sensei fight off the shinobi. Kakashi-sensei had already activated his sharingan. I joined in the fight and clashed with one of the shinobi. I pulled out a kunai and waited for the shinobi to attack first.

I got my wish as he came at me with a new weapon. He launched the giant shuriken at me and I dodged it easily. I took my kunai and threw it at him with great precision. He was so shocked that I dodged the giant shuriken he didn't even know that I launched the kunai at him. The kunai struck him in the right shoulder and he fell to the ground in pain.

"You brat!" He shouted as he pulled the kunai out of his shoulder and got up to attack again. This time he performed some hands signs and I recognized it as a water jutsu. I prepared for the attack by performing a jutsu of my own.

I did a hand sign and 100 Naruto's appeared. They all launched themselves at the shinobi, the shinobi made a whip of water and slashed it at the other me's. He made quite a few disappear but there were still many shadow clones left.

My shadow clones finally subdued him by holding him to the ground. I had three of them tie him up before they dispersed. I returned to Kakashi-sensei who had already defeated the second shinobi. I grabbed the shinobi I had defeated and brought him over to Kakashi-sensei. Kakashi-sensei deactivated his sharingan and covered it with his headband. He looked at the two shinobi tied up on the ground and said,

"Who hired you?" They didn't respond so Kakashi-sensei took a kunai out of his pouch and launched it at one of the shinobi. The unlucky shinobi died and the other just sat there and closed his eyes. Kakashi-sensei got tired of waiting for an answer and performed a genjutsu on the man.

After a few minutes he came out of the genjutsu and the shinobi bowed his head in shame. Kakashi-sensei walked over to Tazuna who just stood there in shock with Hinata standing beside him.

"Did you know that these shinobi were after you?" He asked with a serious look in his eye. Tazuna also bowed his head in shame as he knew that Kakashi-sensei knew that he did.

"Yes." He answered with his head still lowered.

"Why didn't you just ask for a B-rank mission. The Hokage would've assigned proper shinobi for this mission. You put my students at risk for making a false request." Kakashi-sensei said with his arms crossed. Tazuna just lowered his head even lower.

"I'm sorry, but I just don't have the money to pay for a B-rank mission. I needed protection." He said as he lifted his head a little.

"Well you're lucky that two of my students were strong enough to protect you. We shall continue this mission." Kakashi-sensei said as he offered Tazuna a hand and helped him up.

Kiba was still unconscious so Kakashi-sensei picked him up and put him over his shoulder. Akamaru jumped out of the bush and then we headed off yet again.

We reached the land of waves without another problem. Tazuna began his bridge building work and I met his daughter and her son. I taught her son that his father died in honor of the village and he shouldn't be disappointed about him. He thanked me graciously and we left.

Kakashi-sensei taught us how to climb trees while Tazuna built the bridge. Although I already knew how to climb trees so I demonstrated for the others. I got plenty of scoffs from Kiba and Hinata listened intently. She learned it much faster than Kiba.

Once Hinata got it Kiba 'secretly' asked her for advice. She giggled then whispered into his ear. Kiba took her advice and learned how to climb trees a few hours later.

We went to check on the bridge and when we got there we were met by a man with a mask covering his lower face and a boy with long hair that looked like a girl. We all took defensive positions around Tazuna while Kakashi-sensei took up a fighting stance.

I could see that Kiba was just itching to go into battle, but learned his lesson earlier when he was knocked unconscious. Akamaru had a little lecture by Kiba about being a coward and didn't back down. The masked man attacked Kakashi-sensei as the girl looking boy attacked us.

"My name is Haku Yuki. Please just call me Haku." He said emotionless. He ran up to us with abnormal speed. His hands performed hand signs that I did not recognize. Suddenly a giant dome of ice appeared around us as Haku said, "Demonic Ice Mirrors." Haku then appeared in every glass surface inside the dome.

We were all still in defensive positions around Tazuna. Hinata activated her byakugan in hopes of finding out which Haku was the real one. She searched but was unable to pinpoint his location.

Needles of ice came flying at us from every direction. With Hinata's byakugan she deflected all the ice needles that came her way with an attack called, '64 palms'. I also deflected all the ice needles that came at me while Kiba and Akamaru were surprisingly deflecting all the needles as well.

Soon the needles stopped and Haku jumped from mirror to mirror. A barrage of attacks were launched at us from every direction. Hinata and I kept deflecting the ice attacks but it seems that Kiba and Akamaru were unable to keep up.

They collapsed with gashes on their skin and a few ice needles stuck in them. This left an open flank in our defenses and Tazuna unprotected. Haku took this as an opening and attacked Tazuna. I quickly reacted and blocked the attack but was unable to block it from myself.

I collapsed in pain and heard Hinata scream my name. At that moment Haku left the ice dome and Hinata came running over to me. She pulled out her medical kit and started to tend to my wounds.

"Hinata. Haku might come back. Get him out of here and keep him safe." I said in a weak voice.

"Please Hinata. You have to protect Tazuna. I'll be alright." I said to her as I closed my eyes for a little rest.

"Alright Naruto." Hinata said as I felt her leave my side. After a few minutes I heard footsteps approach. Then as the footsteps grew closer they became more fast paced by the second.

"Naruto are you alright!?" I heard a familiar voice shout. I slowly opened my eyes and saw Kakashi-sensei holding me up with one arm and Hinata standing over them. I just nodded. I heard a sigh of relief come from Kakashi-sensei and noticed Hinata wipe away a few tears.

_"Are my wounds really that great?"_I asked myself. "Kiba and Akamaru need medical attention." I managed to get out. I heard Kakashi-sensei chuckle.

"You should worry about yourself. Naruto." Kakashi-sensei said as I saw him take out his medical kit and began cleaning and bandaging my wounds. "Hinata. Please tend to Kiba and Akamaru." I heard footsteps walking away from us following Kakashi-sensei's words. Then I remembered the bridge builder.

"What about Tazuna? is he alright?" I asked weakly. Kakashi-sensei stopped briefly before saying,

"Yes. Tazuna is alright. After we're done here will set off back to the Leaf Village. " Kakashi-sensei said as he continued bandaging my wounds.

After a few more days Tazuna completed the bridge and I became strong enough to proceed to the Leaf Village. Tazuna named the bridge after me because I helped him and his grandson. 'The Great Naruto Bridge'. We said our goodbyes and we left the land of waves.

We arrived at the Leaf Village after a few days. When we entered the village, the shinobi at the gate looked shocked at my bandaged state. I saw them write something down on a clipboard and hurriedly sent a bird to the Hokage's office. That's when I knew that they had told my father about the state I was in at the moment.

_"Today is going to be a long day."_ I said to myself as we walked over to the Hokage's tower. When we entered we were met by a secretary of the tower and she said,

"The Hokage wishes to see you all in his office right away. Please bring your mission scroll along with you." She said as she returned to her desk. We walked up a few flight of stairs and knocked on the Hokage's office door.

"Enter." Said a stern voice. I haven't heard my father this serious in a long time. We all filed into the room and saw a serious looking blond man sitting behind a desk with his hands on top of it. His eyes were closed and he was breathing heavily like he was trying to suppress something. After a few more deep breaths he slowly opened his eyes and said in a loud angry voice, "KAKASHI! YOU DARE PUT MY SON IN DANGER!" Kakashi-sensei stepped forward to speak after dad took another deep breath and calmed himself.

"Sensei, we were unaware of the danger of the mission. We requested for a simple C-rank mission, but along the way it turned into a B-rank mission." Kakashi-sensei said calmly.

"Then why didn't you return to the village and ask for a different mission. I would've assigned the client an appropriate team." Dad said.

"I believed we would be able to complete our mission." Kakashi-sensei said as he lowered his head. Dad took another deep breath before speaking.

"Kakashi. You are hereby relieved of your duties as Jounin-sensei." At that moment all the Genin in the room gasped.

"Dad that's not fair! I got hurt because of my actions, not Kakashi-sensei's!" I yelled at my father.

"Naruto. If Kakashi decided to come back to the village you wouldn't be hurt right now." Dad said calmly. I knew he was right but it really was my fault that I got hurt. "Naruto, your safety among all other shinobi comes first." He said as a knock was heard at the door. "Come in." Then in walked a woman with light blonde hair in two ponytails. She was wearing a gray garment with a green cloak over it. "Right on time, Tsunade." Dad said with a smile on his face.

"What do you want Minato." The woman who I presume is Tsunade said.

"I would like you to check my son's wounds." He said as Tsunade turned to look at me.

_"Tsunade. I've heard that name before."_That's when it hit me. "Tsunade? As in the legendary sannin?" She looked at me for a second and then said,

"Yeah. What of it kid?" Tsunade said back in an annoyed tone.

"It's nothing. It's just that you are the best medical ninja the shinobi world has ever seen." I answered her in a surprised tone.

"Alright Minato. I'll take a look at him, although, I must say his wounds don't look to serious." Tsunade said to my father.

"Thank you Tsunade. Everyone is dismissed. Except for you Kakashi. We must discuss your position now that you are no longer a Jounin sensei." Kakashi nodded and stayed behind while everyone else filed out of the room.

Tsunade led me to the hospital and prepared a room. She removed my shirt and the bandages. She laid me down on my back and checked my stomach. Apparently when I protected Tazuna with my body, the ice chunks and needles Haku had launched hit me in the stomach fairly hard.

_"No wonder Kakashi-sensei and Hinata were worried."_I thought to myself. I had other wounds but they weren't as major as the wound in my stomach. It hasn't healed completely so Tsunade said she wants me to come in every week for a check-up until it's completely healed. I walked out of the hospital and went home.

I opened up the door to my house and was hugged tightly by mom.

"Mom? I didn't know you were back from your mission." I said surprised.

"I got a message from your father saying you were hurt. I rushed over here as fast as I could." She said as she tightened her hug.

"You didn't need to do that mom. I'm alright. Really." I said trying to reassure her. She just sobbed into my hair as she was relieved that I was alright. I pushed her away so that I could look into her eyes. "Mom. I'm alright. Trust me." I said. She just nodded and let go. She went to the kitchen to make dinner.

Dad came home after mom and I ate dinner. In the middle of washing dishes he said that Jiraiya would be our new sensei. He said Jiraiya might not be a Jounin but would be a great sensei. I took his word for it knowing that Jiraiya was one of the three legendary sannin and was his own sensei. I felt bad for Kakashi. I wondered what happened to him.

"Dad?" I asked.

"Hm?"

"What happened to Kakashi-sensei?" I asked as I put another plate in the cupboard.

"He has been placed back onto his former ANBU squad." He replied. We finished up the dishes and we all went to bed.

After a year on team Jiraiya we all became Chunin. As Chunin, we were allowed to take solo missions and higher ranked ones. Squad seven got even closer over the years and have stayed close even when we all became Chunin.

Kiba had become more mature and Hinata has become much better in her fighting ability. We all became the closest friends. Akamaru was now large enough that Kiba was able to ride him. I had learned the flying thunder god jutsu and many other things after training with dad and Jiraiya. Unlike my father, I didn't need any jutsu formula's. I was able to use the flying thunder god jutsu to go wherever I like. Today I was going on another solo mission.

I went down stairs ate my breakfast and locked the door behind me. I headed over to the Hokage's tower where my father was waiting to brief me of my mission. I knocked on the door and heard a stern 'Come in' from inside. I walked into the office and saw my father sitting behind his desk.

"This mission is a B-ranked mission. Your mission is to protect the Tsuchikage's granddaughter, Kurotsuchi as she travels to the village hidden in the Rain. This is a very important mission. This will create an alliance between the Leaf and the Stone. I'm counting on you." Dad said as he put his hands on top of his desk.

"I understand dad. I won't let you down." I replied as he handed me the mission scroll and I left the room.

_"A thirteen year old boy being sent on a B-rank mission, solo. I guess that's understandable. Everyone says I'm at least a Jounin level."_I thought to myself as I exited the Leaf village and jumped towards the village hidden in the Stones by trees.

After a few days of tree jumping and a few rests I reached The village hidden in the Stone. I arrived at the village gate and showed the door guards my mission scroll. They let me past and told me the way to the Tsuchikage's tower. On my way there I got many looks of anger and sneers as I walked through the village. I reached the Tsuchikage's tower and entered. I asked the secretary where the Tsuchikage's office was and she smirked. She said that the Tsuchikage's tower was on the top floor.

_"I wonder why everyone was looking at me that way. Maybe it's because they have a grudge against the Leaf."_I thought to myself as I dismissed it as a grudge a few villagers had against the Leaf. I walked up a few flights of stairs and found the door I was searching for. I knocked on it once and heard a 'Come in' from the other side.

I walked in to see a short man sitting behind a desk. I also saw a woman with short black hair wearing a Stone village headband. She wore a red shirt with a brown vest. _"Something's off. I feel multiple presences in this room, but I only see two people."_ I entered the room cautiously and both the Tsuchikage and the black haired kunoichi noticed it and smirked. I frowned a little at this.

When I was fully in the room the door shot closed. I turned around quickly only to have someone pull my arms behind my back. I grunted in pain as my arms were bound behind my back and I was pushed to the ground. I heard some other shinobi jump down from what I suspect was the ceiling and helped the black haired kunoichi take me away to a special prison. I struggled and managed to escape for a minute before more shinobi with masks came in and caught me again.

They put me in some chakra restraining chains in the Tsuchikage's tower and I was unable to perform any hand signs. I was stuck in this prison until someone comes and rescues me. I was captured.

* * *

**A/N I hope you liked this chapter. Please Comment.**


	5. Rescue Mission Failed

Target

Chapter 5: Rescue Mission Failed

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Naruto's POV_

I feel like I've been in this cell for hours. _"To think, the Leaf Village actually thought the Stone village wanted an alliance. They just wanted a Leaf shinobi to use as a hostage." _I thought to myself as I hung my head. Then the short man I saw earlier walked into the cell.

"I am the current Tsuchikage. My name is Onoki. I know who you are. We actually found out just recently. As you know, the Leaf village has kept your true identity secret to everyone not loyal to the village.

We sent a spy into the village years ago. He was able to gain the Hokage's trust and was able to find out something we think is very interesting, Naruto Uzumaki. Otherwise known as Naruto Namikaze, the Hokage's only child." He said with a malicious grin.

"You bastard. The Hokage doesn't have a child. The child died at birth and the Hokage and his wife were to depressed to try and have another child. You're wrong. I'm just a Leaf village Chunin." I said with a disgusted tone.

"Either way it works in our favor. The Hokage would want to save every one of his shinobi and villagers. If you are lying and you are the Hokage's son, that's just an added bonus." He said as he performed some hand signs and I found myself drifting into the darkness.

* * *

_Narrator's POV_

Minato was working on paperwork behind his desk when a Leaf Chunin burst through the door with a frantic look on his face.

"What's wrong?" Minato asked putting down his paperwork calmly.

"Lord Hokage! We received a scroll from the Hidden Stone!" He said handing over the scroll.

"Did something happen to Naruto!?" He asked getting worried. The Chunin just nodded and Minato opened the scroll. He quickly read through it and his eyes went wide.

-Fourth Hokage

We have your 'supposed son'. We knew that you would send your son to something this important. He claims that your child died shortly after he was born. Despite what he's said, we know you have a son and we know that this Chunin is him.

We would like you to come to the Hidden Stone village to see your son. You may try to save him, but we would still like you to come. Go to the Tsuchikage's tower. You know where it is.

Sincerely,

The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki

_"Damn it! How do they know!? How did they find out!?" _Minato thought to himself as he bit his lip in anger. "Get me Sarutobi!" He shouted at the Chunin. The Chunin nodded and quickly left in search of the Third Hokage.

A few minutes later Sarutobi walked in to see an angry looking Hokage.

"You wanted to see me?" Sarutobi asked.

"I need you to resume your position of Hokage for a while." Minato said calming down a bit.

"Of course. May I ask what for?" Sarutobi asked.

"All I can say Hiruzen, is that this is a family emergency." Minato said walking out the door leaving a confused Hiruzen Sarutobi behind.

* * *

Minato met with Kushina about what happened to their son. She was shocked at the news that her son was captured. Shortly after, Minato was able to convince Kushina to stay put and watch over the village while he was gone.

Minato ran towards the Village Hidden in the Stones to rescue Naruto. It didn't take Minato long to get there because of his superhuman speed. He ran straight past the gate and over to the Tsuchikage's tower. Nobody seemed to notice the yellow blur speeding through the village. Minato reached the Tsuchikage's tower and stopped right outside the door.

He opened the door and went in. He saw the Tsuchikage's secretary and a few Stone shinobi. They looked at him with disgust and a hint of sadism. This was something Minato did not like.

"Where is that damn Tsuchikage holding my son?" He said in a tone that would make anyone freeze on the spot. They all pointed downwards and with scared looks on their faces. Minato rushed down the stairs. After going down a few flights he reached a wooden door. He didn't bother trying the handle. He just kicked the door down and was on his way.

He looked around and saw multiple passages. He closed his eyes and started searching for Naruto's chakra. He followed the feeling through endless passages until he reached yet another door. Like last time he just kicked it down. Inside he noticed a short man with his arms across his chest as he sat in a chair outside of a cell with his eyes closed.

"So, you've arrived." The man said with his eyes still closed. Minato saw Naruto behind the cell bars chained up and unconscious.

"What did you do to him you bastard!" Minato yelled at the man.

"Don't worry Hokage. I just put him under a genjutsu. If you like, I could wake him up now." The man said opening his eyes. Minato glared at the man.

"Do it." He said in that tone he used earlier. The man just flinched. He unlocked and entered the cage. Once he was inside, he made a hand sign and touched Naruto on the shoulder. Naruto stirred as his eyes opened and he lifted up his head wearily.

"Dad?" Naruto said as he saw a figure with blond spiky hair. The figure came over to him and knelled to hold him up bit.

"Are you okay Naruto?" Minato said frantically. Naruto nodded as his vision started working again.

* * *

_Naruto's POV_

I felt a hand touch my shoulder as chakra was transmitted into me, releasing a genjutsu. I moved a little to check if I still had feeling in my body. I opened my eyes as I lifted my head and saw a figure with blond spiky hair. The picture was blurry, so I couldn't pinpoint who exactly this figure was, but the only person I know with blond spiky hair other than myself is dad.

"Dad?" I asked trying to confirm my suspicions. Then I felt someone come over to me and hold me up by my shoulders.

"Are you okay Naruto?" The figure said frantically. I nodded as my vision started working correctly. I saw dad holding me up by my shoulders looking into my eyes the short man from earlier standing to the side.

_"He said his name was Onoki." _I thought to myself as I remembered his name. I saw him grinning and wondered why. So I asked. "Why are you grinning?" I asked as I looked up at the short man. All he did was chuckle partly and snap his fingers. Just then 10 Stone shinobi came out of nowhere and grabbed dad. "Dad!" I shouted worriedly as he was pulled from me and now had his arms behind his back. He was on the floor face down when Onoki spoke.

"Now the fun begins." The shinobi who were holding down dad at the moment lifted him up and put him on the wall to my left side. He had the same chakra restraining chains as me and was unable to perform any hand signs. I saw him struggle then give up and just glare at Onoki. Onoki smiled at him and walked over to me.

"Earth Style, Added-Weight Rock technique!" He shouted. Then out of nowhere I felt a rock hard punch to the face. I felt like my head was about to snap off. I might have just gotten a serious case of whiplash though. I returned my head to the position it was originally in to look at Onoki who had punched me in the face with a jutsu enhanced fist. I heard dad growl in anger before he yelled at the man.

"Onoki you bastard! How dare you hurt my son in front of me!" He yelled as he struggled against his restraints even more.

"Oh. So he really is your son. I thought so. The brat lied to me and got what he deserved." Onoki said as he prepared another jutsu enhanced fist. This time he aimed it at my stomach. It felt like his hand went straight through me. I felt myself cough and saw the red liquid. I spit it out of my mouth and just my luck, it landed in Onoki's eyes. I visibly shrank at this.

Onoki wiped the blood from his eyes and yelled, "You brat. Now you're going to get it!" as he enhanced his foot and kicked me in the left leg. The room echoed as a loud crack could be heard, followed by screams of pain. Dad just seemed to get more angry at seeing me get hurt.

"Onoki! Leave him alone! It's me you want!" He shouted at Onoki. Onoki regained his composure before speaking in a malicious tone.

"Oh, but it's much more fun when you get to see your own flesh and blood tortured in front of your eyes." Dad growled and struggled against the chains again. "Uh Uh Uh. Those are chakra chains. Even the most powerful shinobi like Hashirama Senju wouldn't be able to break free of those chains." Onoki said as he returned his attention to me.

"How dare you speak of the first Hokage in that manner! I will make you pay!" Dad shouted at Onoki. Obviously hitting a nerve. I've never seen him like this before. Onoki just shook his head as he punched my right arm. Yet again we heard the room echo with a crack and screams of my pain.

Onoki left after another hour of that relentless torture. Dad had given up on trying to escape after the first half hour. Now he just had his head lowered and listened to my pain.

"I'm sorry dad. This is all my fault. I should have followed my instincts when I arrived in the village and left. But I just thought it was because some villagers had grudges against Leaf shinobi so I wrote it off as that." I whispered as I lowered my head in disappointment. But dad did the opposite. His head shot straight up as he looked at me.

"Naruto. This isn't your fault. It's mine. I was the one who sent you on this mission in the first place. I should have known that Onoki didn't want an alliance between our villages. After what I did, who would?" He said as he lowered his head in disappointment. This time mine shot straight up.

"Dad. What did you do exactly?" I asked out of pure curiosity. Okay maybe just a little out of boredom. I needed someone to talk to. He glanced up and said,

"I killed the second Tsuchikage. Onoki's sensei." I was a little shocked at hearing this. Dad really killed the second Tsuchikage?

"But why?" I asked in a confused whisper.

"Because Mu needed to be stopped. Or he would've destroyed the Leaf Village." Dad said. A feeling of understanding came over me. I haven't talked to dad this long since I was a kid. Even then our talks were short. Then mom started disappearing as well. But now, I feel like our bond has strengthened.

"Dad?" I asked in a whisper. Even though I have no idea why I've been whispering.

"Yes?" He asked as he looked up to look at my bruised and bloody body.

"I love you." I said. I haven't felt this close to my father in forever. His facial expression seemed to relax a bit as he said,

"I love you to, my son." After that we both fell asleep and awaited the next morning for the torture to continue.

* * *

_Narrator's POV_

Minato and Naruto have been gone from the village for 5 years. Over the years, Kushina became more and more worried about her husband and son in to a point of suicidal thoughts.

After a year of reclaiming his title of Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to pass it on to one of his students, Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin, so he would be able to make sure Kushina doesn't do any 'dire actions'.

Both Hiruzen and Tsunade sent many shinobi teams to search for Minato and Naruto. But each team that came back was unable to find any trace of them. Tsunade has tried to get permission to search the Hidden Stone Village, but was denied. The Tsuchikage simply said he didn't want Leaf Village scum to go around searching his Village. The Leaf also tried infiltration but were caught several times.

After 5 years their trail has become dead cold. They eventually gave up and proclaimed both Minato and Naruto dead. Even being assumed dead, Tsunade still sent ANBU squads to search for at least their bodies.

What the Leaf Village didn't know, was that the Hidden Stone was happy when the two were proclaimed dead. Now all they had to worry about were snoopy shinobi wondering what happened to the Leaf's beloved Hokage and the honorable son. Also unknown to the Leaf village is that, the Fourth Hokage and his son were still alive.

Naruto was tortured relentlessly for five years while Minato was tortured emotionally for five years. Naruto was tortured to the point of death many times. The torture stopped briefly until Naruto was healed up a bit more. Then beat up to the point of death again. This continued over the years. The only possible reasons why they wouldn't just kill them already was,

A) They wanted the satisfaction of torturing both the Hokage and his son.

B) They wanted to keep torturing Minato emotionally with his son.

C) If they killed Naruto, Minato might be strong enough to escape. Or,

D) All or the above.

So the torture continued.

* * *

**A/N Yes, yes, I know. This chapter is significantly shorter. I still hope you like it though. Please Review. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this story so far. **


	6. Finally Found

Target

Chapter 6: Finally Found

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Naruto's POV_

Today is a day that my captor has held off on my torture. I was beaten to a bloody pulp yet again and dad just hung his head in shame. I felt bad for him. He hasn't been touched, yet I think he feels the pain in his heart. I have never seen dad like this.

Each day he's being put more and more over the edge. He may be the Fourth Hokage, but even the greatest shinobi have weaknesses. I guess dad's weakness is for his family. He tried escaping many times and almost succeeded. but that just ended with me in a world of hurt. So he stopped trying to escape to avoid getting me hurt more than necessary.

We've been here a long time and pretty much know what happens every day. Each night when the torture is over dad and I talk to each other comfortingly. I've never felt so connected to him in a very long time. I think this whole situation brought us closer together. On days like this when no torture takes place we talk all day. But today dad just stayed quiet. I heard him mutter a few words as he kept his head low.

"Kushina, I'm sorry." I wonder what he could be sorry for. At some point we fell asleep and were awoken by the opening of the cell door. When the Tsuchikage had our full attention he spoke.

"I have an offer for you Naruto." He said with an evil grin. This only caused me and my father to squint a bit.

"Offer?" I asked in a suspicious tone. I might not know exactly how long we have been here, but I do know it's been a long time. If they wanted to offer anything they would've done it already. Right?

"Yes. I am offering you your freedom from this cell. In exchange for your torture you will work under me. More precisely, you'll be my slave." Onoki replied with that same evil grin. I was about to say no when dad spoke.

"Take it Naruto." He said in a demanding and rushed tone.

"But dad. I'm not going to leave you here by yourself. Every night we would talk to each other and that seemed to keep us alive through these times." I responded, not really wanting to work under this bastard.

"Naruto. He may be a bastard, but this way you won't be hurt as often and you'll be able to see the sunlight." He said in a less demanding tone trying to convince me to go. I sighed and gave in. If dad wants something, most likely he won't back down until he gets it. I turned back to the grinning bastard.

"Fine. I'll work under you. On one condition." I said as I went into my own demanding tone.

"What might that be brat?" He asked as he smirked.

"I want you to release my father. If you do, I promise not to run away or attempt to escape." His smirk just got wider. After a few moments of 'thinking' Onoki responded.

"No. What's the point? I guess if I release him he'll have to live with the burden of leaving his precious son behind. But he would always come back for you and we might not be able to stop him. So, he stays right where he is." He said as he walked closer.

"Fine, but I can't guarantee I'll try and escape." I answered as he walked even closer.

"That's fine." He said. Over the time I've been here I've gotten used to all the extremely hard blows. So it wasn't as painful as when I first got here. You could say I can take a hit. But before I knew it Onoki enhanced a fist and launched it into my gut.

I spit out a little blood as I normally did and heard dad call my name before I entered into the blackness. _"That was a much harder punch than normal." _I thought to myself as I was completely swallowed into the darkness.

* * *

_Narrator's POV_

Onoki removed his fist from the blond boy's gut as Minato struggled against the chakra chains. Onoki just laughed at the expression Minato had on his face. A feeling of protectiveness and love for the blond boy. I guess that can be expected of a father.

Although, Onoki didn't feel anything of the sort when his sensei was killed. All Onoki felt was the need for revenge, and he was getting it. He turned to Minato and said,

"It's just a precaution. If he tries to escape he'll try to rescue you first. If he doesn't know where to look than we'll be able to catch him when he's searching for the right room." Onoki turned back to the unconscious blond, took out some keys and unlocked the chakra chains holding Naruto to the wall.

Minato was still struggling when Onoki left and locked the cell door behind him with Naruto hung over his shoulder. Then they were gone. Minato calmed down a bit as more and more of his chakra slipped away from him. What no one noticed was the small mouse in the corner of the cell.

Back in the Leaf Village Tsunade was working on paperwork when Sai walked in with his expressionless face.

"Yes? What is it Sai?" Tsunade asked putting down her paperwork gratefully.

"I believe one of my mice has found Minato and Naruto." Sai said with an expressionless tone. At this Tsunade jumped out of her seat and called for Shizune. Tsunade had Shizune assemble every shinobi currently in the village minus the Genin. They were all gathered before the Fifth Hokage, including Kushina.

"Everyone. Sai believes he has found the Fourth Hokage and his son. His information states that they are most certainly alive. Our mission is to find and rescue them. "Tsunade said as all the shinobi seemed to lighten up a bit.

They would finally be able to see their beloved Hokage and the honorable son yet again. "Everyone. I will personally be leading this mission. We are heading to the Hidden Stone village and demanding them to let us search. If they do not comply, then we will simply barge in with force." Tsunade said.

All the shinobi there clapped. "Let's go!" She said as she led everyone out of the village. Of course she had to leave a few powerful shinobi behind to protect the village in their absence.

Back with Onoki in the Hidden Stone Village, Naruto had awoken and found himself in a bundle of chains. He was told to polish the sacred stone of the Stone Village. If he messed up in the slightest or didn't do what he was told, he was brutally punished with kicks to the gut and other body parts.

As if he wasn't hurt enough. He finished polishing the stone and put it back on the center of the pedestal. He returned to Onoki with the kunoichi from before holding multiple chains that led to his ankles, wrists, and neck. Onoki looked up at him and asked the black-haired kunoichi if he had done his job.

She nodded before Onoki gave him another assignment. This went on and on for hours. Being beaten for disobeying or doing something wrong, then led back to Onoki in chains. How did anyone suspect him to do anything like this? His torn and bloody orange jumpsuit was replaced with maroon colored torn looking clothes. He was chained like a poor forsaken dog. He needed to find a way to escape from his captors and,

A) Find his dad and bring them both back to the Leaf Village. Or,

B) Go to the Leaf Village for back up.

Naruto was having a mental fight with himself over his options. But either way, with his wounds, he won't be going anywhere.

* * *

Tsunade and the other shinobi of the Leaf were racing through the trees towards the Hidden Stone Village. Two people in particular were more determined than anyone to get there. One was a red-haired woman who wants more than anything to save her husband and son. The other was a black-haired raven who wanted to save his best friend. He'd been training for this day. The day where he'd have a chance to save his friend.

They continued towards the Hidden Stone for about 5 minutes when the Village in question came into sight. Everyone seemed to speed up at the sight of the Village. Tsunade in the front followed by the other two legendary Sannin, Jiraiya on the left, and Orochimaru on the right. Following close behind the legendary Sannin were the Jounin shinobi, including Kushina. In the middle of formation were the Chunin, including Sasuke. Then in the very back of the formation were the ANBU. Little did the group know that the Stone Village spy was among them.

In no time at all the Leaf shinobi reached the front of the Stone Village gate. They came to a stop in front of the gate when Tsunade signaled the shinobi to scatter in the groups she had mentioned earlier. ANBU squads with Chunnin squads, Jounin in three man squads by themselves, and all three Legendary Sannin for themselves.

The shinobi squads scattered in their respected groups throughout the village looking for signs of Naruto/Minato. The ANBU Chunin squads searched the main parts of the Village. The Jounin squads searched the low profile parts of the Village. The Legendary Sannin used their Legendary skills to try and pinpoint Naruto and Minato's position. Tsunade was searching throughout the secure parts of the Village, questioning anyone that looked suspicious.

The Stone villagers were angry that the Leaf decided to infiltrate their Village. But what could they do? They were normal people, not ninja. Even the shinobi within the village were afraid to stand up to the Leaf. The Leaf was the mightiest of the Hidden Village's. The only difference from before is that they were **asking** permission to search the Stone Village in small numbers. This time they invaded the Village with almost every shinobi they had. Jiraiya was searching the hidden underground passages that he found with his spymaster skills. Orochimaru went straight towards the Tsuchikage's tower. Everyone he passed bowed slightly.

Orochimaru walked straight into the tower. He was welcomed with open arms and led to where the Tsuchikage was currently residing. He saw the Tsuchikage with his granddaughter, Kurotsuchi. She was holding multiple chains. He followed the chains with his eyes until they fell upon what the chains were holding. He saw a bloody and bruised blond-haired male. He was wearing maroon clothes that were torn. He was lying on the floor with his eyes closed. Orochimaru smirked at the unconscious boy.

"What do you want me to do with him sensei?" Orochimaru said in his snake like voice.

"For now I want you to remain hidden within the Leaf Village. Take the boy and pretend you found him. I'll tell you more later." Onoki said as Kurotsuchi handed Orochimaru the chains.

"What about Minato?" Orochimaru said releasing the boy from his chains and slinging him over his shoulder.

"Jiraiya is currently searching all the underground passages. Eventually he'll find Minato and bring him back safely. I have a plan so don't worry about it. I will get revenge for my sensei." Onoki said as he turned around and walked away with Kurotsuchi. Orochimaru ran out of the Tsuchikage's tower pretending to be in a hurry. He headed towards where he felt Tsunade's chakra. By now Orochimaru was holding Naruto bridal style. He finally reached Tsunade and called out to her.

"Tsunade!" Tsunade stopped her search and looked back at the person who called to her. She caught sight of Orochimaru holding a boy with blond hair. Her eyes widened in shock at realizing who Orochimaru was carrying. She quickly ran over to Orochimaru. Orochimaru set the blond-haired boy down as Tsunade quickly looked him over. Tears started to form at the corner of her eyes.

_"What the hell did they do to him?" _Tsunade thought to herself as she wiped away her tears and started her medical ninjutsu. Orochimaru just sat by and watched.

Jiraiya had caught a glimpse of his students' chakra and ran towards it. Soon after Jiraiya felt Minato's chakra right above him. He looked up and stepped to the side a bit. He held out his right arm and started forming a ball of pure chakra. He looked back up at the ceiling and launched the rasengan at the top. The ceiling collapsed and Jiraiya jumped up onto the floor above him. When the dust from the attack cleared his eyes widened in shock. Before him he saw a sullen looking blond-haired male. Jiraiya recognized him instantly.

"Minato." He whispered. He then ran over to the cell door and launched another rasengan at the bars. The bars perished and Jiraiya ran into the cell. He went over to his student and checked his pulse. His pulse was normal and it looked like he didn't have a scratch on him. Jiraiya quickly found a way to unlock the chains holding Minato without hurting him. Minato fell into Jiraiya's arms unconscious. Jiraiya quickly bit his thumb, did a few hand signs and summoned a medium sized toad. He placed Minato ontop of the toad and he and the toad went back to the main parts of the Village through the underground passages.

Jiraiya and the toad exited the underground passage where Jiraiya previously entered. Jiraiya followed the chakra sense of Tsunade and Orochimaru. Soon he arrived at the scene where Tsunade was hurriedly healing a blond-haired boy. The boy still had many wounds and was covered in blood. Jiraiya set Minato down next to the blond boy and sat in between Orochimaru and Tsunade. Tsunade was working frantically on the blond boy. Her hands were shaking miraculously.

"Ji-Jiraiya. O-Orochimaru. P-please contact the o-other shinobi." She said, her voice shaky. Jiraiya and Orochimaru quickly got up and went in different directions to tell all the other Leaf shinobi that they found what they were looking for.

All the Leaf shinobi were told to return to the Leaf Village. Two shinobi were given the choice to stay with the Legendary Sannin and the two ninja who were missing for 5 years. The two shinobi decided to stay, and each followed one of the Legendary Sannin to the place where they left Tsunade. One shinobi ran quickly over to the two unconscious shinobi on the ground, while the other kept his composer to run over to the shinobi but bit his lip in anger and happiness.

"Minato! Please wake up!" A red-haired shinobi said as tears rolled down her face. She looked at Minato and then turned to Naruto and gasped. "Naruto? Naruto!" She said as more tears streamed down her face. She saw Tsunade's shaking hands and decided to take over. She started performing her own medical ninjutsu on Naruto. Kushina's medical ninjutsu isn't as effective as Tsunade's, but in Tsunade's state Kushina's medical ninjutsu outclasses Tsunade's.

After primary treatment on Naruto and a checkup on Minato, 5 shinobi headed out of the Stone Village with Naruto and Minato. They had no more business in the Stone Village so what was the point in staying? The group reached the Leaf Village and they immediately admitted Naruto and Minato in the shinobi hospital. Tsunade had calmed down and started her medical ninjutsu again on Naruto. Minato was being kept in the room next door.

Minato woke up a few days later and found himself in a room unknown to him. The room was fairly simple. It had a chair in this corner, a chair in that corner, and a door across from the bed. Suddenly a red-haired woman ran into the room and saw Minato awake and confused. She ran over to him with tears in her eyes. Minato's eyes widened at realization of who was before his eyes. Was he just hallucinating? The woman put him in a tight embrace and Minato realized that he was not dreaming nor was he hallucinating. A smile appeared on his face as the woman squeezed him tighter.

"Kushina." He said as a single tear of joy rolled down his face.

"Minato." Kushina said as she sobbed as well. They had a moment of silence as they tried to make up for the 5 years they missed. Although, all the time in the world would not be enough to make up for that lost time.

It was weeks before Naruto finally woke up. By this time Minato had regained his strength to walk and visited his son frequently. He refused to take up the position of Hokage again until he was ready. Minato was in the room when Naruto woke up gasping. Minato jolted out of his seat and went to Naruto's side. Naruto was gasping for air.

_"Tsunade said he was stable. What's wrong with him?" _Minato thought to himself with a worried expression. He grabbed onto Naruto's hand and shouted for Tsunade. Minutes later Tsunade ran in and saw Naruto gasping for air. She quickly ran over to Naruto and started performing her medical ninjutsu.

_"There's nothing wrong with him. He doesn't have any wounds that would cause him pain. So what's the matter with him?" _Tsunade thought to herself as she stopped her medical ninjutsu.

"Tsunade! Why did you stop!" Minato shouted at the Legendary Sannin, still holding Naruto's hand.

"There's nothing wrong with him! He must be in shock from something that happened to him or a nightmare he had." Tsunade said to the worried Minato.

After a few minutes, Tsunade and Minato were able to calm Naruto down and he stopped gasping.

* * *

_Naruto's POV_

I was in the Stone Village and the Tsuchikage decided to execute my father. I retaliated and was overcome by many ANBU shinobi. I was being held right in front of my father as the Tsuchikage punched the life out of him. Screams of pain could be heard throughout the Village. My father went into the depths of unconsciousness and Onoki took out a sword and brought down on my father's neck.

"Dad!" I screamed as I struggled against the Stone ANBU shinobi. Dad's head rolled down and I felt tears forming in my eyes as his head settled right in front of me. I suppressed my tears because shinobi don't cry in front of the enemy.

I then felt myself gasping for air and my eyes fluttered open. I felt someone squeeze my hand and call for someone. That someone ran over and I felt a sense of chakra come over me. Someone was trying to heal me. But I didn't feel any pain. The only pain I felt was in my head. After many minutes my breathing returned to normal and my vision started returning as well. I saw my father at my side holding my hand with a worried expression on his face. I also saw Tsunade.

"Dad?" I asked. He nodded and I pulled him into a tight hug. _"He didn't die. Thank goodness. It was just a nightmare." _I thought to myself as a single tear streamed down my face. After a while we released the embrace and a woman with red hair ran in.

"Mom?" I asked, taking in the woman's appearance. She cried as she hugged me.

"Naruto. Thank goodness your alive." She said as she sobbed into my shoulder. After my reunion with mom Tsunade asked if she could have a moment to speak with me. They left the room and I turned to Tsunade.

"Naruto. Do you feel alright?" She asked.

"Yeah I feel fine. I just had a bad dream before I woke up." I answered as her worried expression softened into a small smile. "How long was I out?"

"You were out for 4 weeks after we rescued you. You were away from the Village for 5 years." She said. This news shocked me. I knew that dad and I were away from the Village for a long time, but I never expected 5 years. Then being out cold for 4 weeks, that was also surprising. "Naruto. I would like to give you something. I gave it to my brother, now I would like to give it to you." She said as she grabbed something from around her neck and gave it to me.

I held it in my hand and looked at it. It was a light blue crystal on a black wire. There were gray balls on both sides of the crystal.

"Um. Tsunade?" I asked. She looked at me and I continued. "What happened to your brother?" When I said this, her face saddened and looked like she was holding back tears. She sniffled before she spoke.

"He was killed in an explosive trap. Orochimaru and two other Genin were with him. He was the only one who didn't make it. Orochimaru returned his necklace to me and I've had it ever since. I gave it to him for his 12th birthday." She finished with a sob. Now I felt bad for asking.

"I'm really sorry Tsunade." I said with sympathy towards the woman. She sniffled a few more sobs before speaking.

"Don't worry about it. It was a long time ago. Keep the necklace. It will make me happy to see it in good hands." Tsunade said as she turned on her heels and exited the hospital room. I held the necklace in my hands and looked at for a few moments before slipping it over my head and around my neck. I laid back down against my pillow for some actual rest and drifted off into the dream world.

* * *

**A/N Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review. I would appreciate any kind of feedback for this story.**


	7. The Plan

Target

Chapter: 7 The Plan

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto Franchise**

_Narrator's POV_

After a few more days in the hospital, Naruto was released from the hospital and allowed to go home. Naruto was after all, a fast healer. He returned home where Kushina was waiting. Kushina took care of her son more than she used to. Naruto was grateful that his parents were there for him more, but he didn't want it to interfere with their own lives.

After Naruto was released, Kushina managed to talk Minato into retaking the position of Hokage. Minato was reluctant at first, but with the persuasive words of Kushina, complied. Tsunade gratefully stepped down and traveled the great nations as the Legendary Sucker.

After a week or so at his house, Naruto got bored and decided to ask for a mission. He headed towards the Hokage's Tower. Once he was standing in front of the looming tower Naruto entered and headed towards the mission desk. He saw Iruka and two other Chunin he had not met yet. He walked over to Iruka and said,

"Iruka-sensei. Could I have a mission?" Iruka looked up from his clipboard and saw Naruto. He hadn't seen the blond boy since he was assigned a Jounin sensei. He heard about his disappearance and was one of the many shinobi who searched for him. His eyes filled with tears as he looked a Naruto. He stood up from his seat abruptly and tightly caught Naruto in an embrace, causing everyone in the room to stare. Naruto felt like the air was being squeezed right out of him. Iruka let go and sat back down in his chair.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but the Hokage asked that if you came around you should go to him for a mission." Iruka said as he straightened out some papers next to his clipboard. Naruto sighed and thanked Iruka.

He walked up the stairs and eventually reached the top floor. He walked down the hall to a door that was all too familiar. It was the door he got the mission that led to both of their suffering. He knocked once and quickly heard his father say 'Come in'. Naruto stepped into the office and walked over to the front of his father's desk. His father was currently writing something down until he put down his pen and looked up at him.

"What is it Naruto?" He said with a calm voice.

"I would like a mission." Naruto stated plainly. Minato seemed like he was in deep thought before he answered.

"I will allow you to go on solo missions as long as they are D-ranks. If you want a higher ranked mission I would have no problem assembling your old squad to accompany you." He said staring at his son.

Naruto looked a little annoyed. He wasn't denied any higher rank missions before. Why would anything change now? Even before that one mission where he disappeared, he was at least allowed on a C-rank no questions asked. As these thoughts raced through Naruto's mind, Minato was waiting patiently for Naruto's reply.

After a few more minutes of battling inside his head, Minato let out a fake cough to gain Naruto's attention. Naruto looked over at Minato and sighed.

"Fine. I would like to take a C-rank mission." Naruto said a little annoyed with his father. Minato nodded.

"Please go find Jiraiya, Hinata and Kiba. Then bring them back here to receive your mission." Minato said returning to his paperwork. Naruto left the office and headed to the place he thought the pervy sage would be.

Naruto found Jiraiya quite quickly. He found him peeping into the women's section in the hot spring, exactly like he suspected.

_"He hasn't changed." _Naruto thought to himself as he shook his head. Shortly after, they found Kiba with Akamaru. Kiba was a little more mature than Naruto remembered but was still acting like a child. Akamaru had grown tremendously big. He was big enough to ride now.

A few minutes later, they found Hinata training in the Hyuga compound. Her hair was now cascading down her back. Other than that, nothing much has changed. She was still training when we walked up to her. She only turned around when Akamaru barked at her. When she saw Naruto her eyes showed signs of happiness and relief. She ran up to Naruto and hugged him. Naruto hugged her back.

After the reunion the old gang headed towards the Hokage tower. They went straight up to the top towards the Hokage's office. They knocked once when a voice behind the door answered.

"Come in." We all walked into the office and closed the door behind us. "Okay. Your mission is a C-rank. You will be escorting a few merchants from the Leaf Village to the Star Village." He said as he threw Jiraiya a mission scroll.

"Minato. This is a C-rank mission. I'm sure that it would only take one of them to complete this mission. Is there really a need for all of us to go on this mission?" Jiraiya asked looking at the scroll in his hands. Naruto just hung his head.

"After what had happened I hope you can understand why I want Naruto's old squad to accompany him. You are to supervise them. Make sure they don't get hurt." When Minato said the last part he gave Jiraiya a glare that surpassed even an Uchiha's. Jiraiya didn't say anything. He just put the scroll away and walked out of the office gesturing us to follow.

* * *

_Naruto's POV_

We walked towards the main gates of the village. Kiba kept mumbling to himself about a stupid C-rank mission while riding Akamaru. Hinata just walked quietly next to me. Jiraiya was walking in front of us looking left and right at the girls who passed us. Once the gates came into sight, we saw the merchants who we were to escort. They waved to us as we walked up to them.

"This is how we are going to head to the Sand Village." He said to the merchants who just nodded in understanding. "I will take the front. Naruto will head the rear, Kiba and Akamaru will take the left flank, Hinata will take the right flank, and you merchants will be in the middle." Jiraiya said. We all took our positions in the formation and started our journey to the Sand Village.

We arrived in the Sand Village without a hitch. The merchants signed our mission scroll, paid us, and said their goodbyes. We returned to the Leaf Village without any problems.

_"Dad has gone way overboard with this whole 'It's for your protection' thing. Talk about over protection." _I thought to myself as we entered the village's front gates.

"Welcome back guys!" One of the gate guards said to us as we walked into the village. Kiba and Hinata waved as we continued to head for the Hokage tower.

When we reached the tower we were told that the Hokage wanted to see us. We all headed up the stairs to my dad's office. We didn't even have to knock when we reached the door. The door was wide open and we saw my dad looking at us from behind his desk. He gestured us in and we filed into the room. Jiraiya shut the door behind us and we all stood before dad's desk. Dad took in a deep breath as he rested his hands on top of the desk and closed his eyes.

"Naruto, I thought I told you to enter and exit the village through one of the side gates." Dad said calmly opening his eyes. This got on my nerves a little.

_"First it was the new mission rule. Then I can't use the front gate!?" _I thought to myself in anger. When dad didn't get a response, Jiraiya spoke.

"I'm sorry Minato. We were really tired and did not want to take the extra time to walk around for a side entrance."

"Fine. Just this once, I'll let it slide. But please, no more excuses. Naruto please enter and exit the village through a gate other than the main one. You never know if those Stone bastards or any other shinobi may be watching." Minato said with that look in his eye. "You're all dismissed." He said. We all bowed and headed out the door. I was almost out of the office when I heard him say, "Naruto, please stay." I halted at the door and turned around to face him.

"Look dad I'm sorry. I just don't understand why I can't move around freely without you watching me. I know about that ANBU agent you have following me around. I just want things to go back to the way they were." I said with a pleading tone. I was really getting sick of this. I watched as dad took in another deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened his eyes he spoke.

"So you noticed. That ANBU was the best I had. When did you find out?" He asked.

"I noticed ever since I was released from the hospital and you resumed the position of Hokage.

"That soon, huh." He said closing his eyes again. When they opened up he continued. "I understand your feelings about not having free actions within the Village. You must understand that I'm doing this for you protection. After what happened in the Stone Village, I want to make sure you're safe. I don't want something like that happening again." He said looking into my eyes with sadness. I had a feeling he felt guilty about what had happened. But what he said just seemed to set me off more.

"Look dad, I understand why you're doing this, but I can take care of myself! That one time in Stone was just because I thought it was a mission. I wasn't expecting an ambush." I said storming out of the office.

* * *

_Narrator's POV_

Naruto stormed out of the office, leaving a saddened Minato behind. Unknown to both, deep underground a meeting was being held between two people. One was a short man with a bad back. The other was a man with pale skin and yellow snake like eyes.

"Do you understand the plan?" The short man asked. The snake man nodded.

"I do, sensei." The man said bowing to his sensei.

"Good." He said, turning around.

* * *

The next day, Naruto was eating breakfast with Kushina. Minato was busy with work. The two ate in utter silence. Naruto was just picking at his food, feeling guilty about what he said to Minato. Kushina looked up from her food and looked at Naruto with a suspicious look.

"Is something wrong Naruto?" Kushina asked her son. Naruto briefly stopped picking at his food.

"No. I'm okay mom." Naruto replied picking at his food again. Kushina glanced at Naruto with a look that said that she knew Naruto was lying. But instead of trying to force it out of her son, she let it slide and they finished their breakfast in silence. Naruto was thankful that his mother decided to let the topic go. He didn't feel like talking at the moment.

After breakfast, Naruto decided to go meet up with Sasuke. He hadn't seen Sasuke since the day he left for the Stone Village. He wondered why his best friend hadn't visited him since he came back. He thought that Sasuke would be able to help him with this over protection situation. Naruto walked towards the Uchiha compound where he expected to find the Uchiha. As he was walking he happened across old faces.

"Naruto!" Naruto turned around to see a long light blonde-haired woman in a single pony tail running towards him.

"Oh hey Ino." Naruto replied to the girl. He was a little worried that Ino was going to delay him as he walked to the Uchiha compound. It was no secret that Ino had a crush on Naruto. When Naruto was in the Village before he went to the Stone, she flirted with him constantly.

"I'm glad you're back safe." She said as she brushed some hair out of her face.

"Thanks. I'm glad to be back." Naruto said as he walked up to the gates of the Uchiha compound. He was about to enter when Ino ran up behind him.

"Are you going to see Sasuke?" She asked.

"Yeah. I haven't seen him since I came back." Ino was a little surprised when Naruto said this. She knew Sasuke was Naruto's best friend. You would think that a best friend would be the first person to check up on him.

"Well you won't find him in the Uchiha compound." Ino said. Naruto was grateful that she told him. She saved him the time of searching for Sasuke himself. But Naruto was confused. Why hadn't she started flirting with him yet? Normally she would cling herself to him and flirt. Why wasn't she doing that now?

"Hey Ino. What happened while I was gone?" Naruto asked before Ino turned away.

"Well, a lot happened. It's a long story. We can get together and catch up later if you like." She told Naruto. He nodded and she thought of a place to meet up. "How about we go to the Barbecue place? Do you still know where it is?" Naruto nodded and she waved goodbye. "See you then Naruto! I'll bring some of the others too!" With that Ino ran to wherever she was headed.

Naruto turned to walk towards the Forest of Death. Upon seeing the Forest, Naruto smiled at the memories he recollected from the sight. He remembered the time of the Chunin exams. His team did great in the second stage. Although Kiba was a little enthusiastic at the time.

Naruto walked in and immediately saw the destruction to the forest._ "Did Sasuke do this?"_ Naruto asked himself. He walked in further and saw a clearing with craters and broken trees everywhere. He then caught a glimpse of Sasuke's chakra. He followed the chakra trail left behind and found someone lying in the middle of a clearing.

Upon closer inspection, Naruto realized that the man lying there was Sasuke. "Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he ran toward his friend. Sasuke moved a little and opened his eyes slowly.

"Naruto?" Sasuke said as Naruto held him in his arms. When Sasuke realized this, he immediately shot up out of his arms. When Sasuke saw Naruto, he had a flash of memory when he first saw Naruto in 5 years. He saw Naruto covered in blood and bruises. He had faded marks on his wrists, ankles, and neck. Sasuke then turned around from his friend and made his way to a different part of the forest. Naruto followed him.

"Sasuke!" Naruto called after him. Sasuke just started taking down trees with a jutsu Naruto hadn't seen from him before. It looked a lot like Kakashi's Lightening Blade. You could hear the sound of about 1,000 birds. "Sasuke." Naruto called out to his raging friend. Sasuke then collapsed and Naruto caught him in his arms. Naruto absorbed the new appearance Sasuke had as he lay unconscious in Naruto's arms. Sasuke grew taller, and wore his usual attire.

Naruto quickly brought Sasuke to the hospital bridal style. When he entered he was met with a medic that had short pink hair. _"Pink hair? Sakura?" _Naruto thought to himself as Sakura turned their way. When she saw Naruto a smile appeared on her face. But when she saw Sasuke the smile turned into a gasp. She dropped some folded blankets on the floor and quickly ran over.

"Sasuke!" She shouted as she took Sasuke from Naruto's arms. Hearing the commotion from downstairs, Tsunade walked in to see confused patients and friends in the lobby. She also saw three people on the floor. She walked over and saw her apprentice, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke. She quickly took Sasuke out of Sakura's arms and ran him into a nearby room.

Naruto and Sakura sat in the lobby waiting for Tsunade to return. Everything happened so quickly that Naruto and Sakura just sat in silence. After what felt lie hours, Tsunade walked out of the room and Sakura literally jumped out of her seat to greet her. Naruto slowly got up and joined the frantic Sakura.

"He's going to be fine. He's just extremely plagued. After resting for a few days, he should be fine." Tsunade said as she walked away. Sakura sighed in relief. Naruto didn't let anything show, but inside he felt relieved.

* * *

_Naruto's POV_

Sasuke was in the hospital for three days until he woke up. When he woke, he didn't say a word to me or anyone. So I just gave him some space. It was a little upsetting to not talk to my best friend.

So now, I was heading towards the Barbecue place to meet up with Ino. I walked through the village, and as I did, everyone who saw me bowed their heads, some even went as far as addressing me as the, 'Honorable son'. It confused me. No one bothered to call me that before. I walked into the Barbecue place and instantly saw the light blonde head of Ino. Apparently she was waiting for me.

"Hey Ino! Have you been waiting long?" I asked as I walked up to her. She turned around and let out a smile, her eyes disappearing as she did.

"Oh! Naruto! No I haven't. We already have a table, so let's go!" She said excitedly as she took my hand and led me further into the restaurant. We came up to a private room and she led me inside. Sitting alongside the table, I saw a bunch of familiar faces.

I saw, Neji, Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, Lee, Kiba, Akamaru, Tenten, and Hinata. I was about to take a seat in between Shikamaru and Choji, when Ino came up behind me and frowned. "Naruto. We reserved your seat at the head of the table." She said as her eyebrows cringed. She looked angry. I didn't understand it.

Nevertheless, I got up and walked to the head of the table. When I looked back at where I was previously, I saw Ino talking to Shikamaru happily. Shikamaru still looked like he didn't care when others talked to him like he did five years ago. But when I saw Ino talking to him, he looked more cheerful and not a lazy pain in the ass.

_"Now it all makes sense. They're dating." _I thought to myself as I tried holding back a small chuckle. But my efforts failed as small laughter filled the room. Everyone suddenly became quiet and looked at me. I noticed this and stopped laughing. When I did, Ino and Shikamaru spoke at the same time.

"What's so funny!?" They asked with a hint of anger in their voices. This just made me start laughing again. By this time everyone had a confused expression on their faces. Once I stopped laughing I answered them.

"I just never would have guessed that you two were da-" I started but then suddenly stopped. I noticed Shikamaru had his hands in a very familiar hand sign. _"They haven't told anyone? How long have they been dating?" _I thought to myself. Everyone turned to look at Shikamaru who just had a nervous expression on his face. He released his jutsu, and I was able to move freely again.

"Sorry." He said as he sat back down. Soon after our food came and we all ate happily. In between bites of food, we talked about everything that happened while I was gone. Everyone at the table was promoted to Jounin about four years after I was captured.

They said Sakura was also promoted to Jounin, but took up medical ninjutsu. They said she became the Fifth Hokage's apprentice. I'm happy for her. She's moving up in the ninja world. She may have been extremely annoying, but nevertheless I'm happy for her. Who knows? Maybe she changed. All the while when we talked, Ino and Shikamaru never said anything about their relationship.

They also brought up something I found very interesting. They said Choji had a girlfriend. I never thought the Akimichi would have a girlfriend. No offense on his part. When Choji talked about his girlfriend he seemed to be in his own little world.

He would stop eating for once in his life and talk in a dreamy manner. He said her name was Chizuru Yamanaka. I thought this was weird. Chizuru was as slim as a pencil according to Choji, yet she still loves him. Well I guess I was never the best at situations involving love. All I know is that you have to be true to your heart.

Kiba said that he to, had a girlfriend. This just got me asking the question of why he didn't tell me on our mission we went on together. He just said that a mission needs the shinobi's full attention for it to be successful.

Sure, I'll believe you meant that when pigs start to fly. Anyway, his girl goes by the name of, Misao Kurama. Apparently she comes from the Kurama clan. I haven't heard much of the Kurama clan but what I do know is that they were once a great clan of genjutsu masters.

Surprisingly enough Tenten and Lee are dating. That's another one of the surprising relationships that came up during our conversation. Then another shocker. Neji also has a girlfriend. Sad thing is, he didn't mention her himself. Hinata brought it up.

Once she did, Neji just sighed and started explaining his girlfriend. Usually when Neji talks, he talks with boredom and annoyance. But this wasn't the case. He actually sounded happy for once. He said his girlfriend's name was Sayaka Uchiha. Wow. I wonder how that's going to work out.

Sure, both the Hyuga and the Uchiha clans live in the village, but they've had a long time rivalry about which clan had the stronger bloodline. It's almost like a forbidden love in my eyes. Unless the Uchiha and the Hyuga's changed while I was gone. I highly doubt it though.

Shino said he found a woman who loved insects just as much as he does. Usually he speaks in a neutral manner, but when he talked about his lady, he showed signs of life. He said her name was Yukari Inuzuka. Great, the dog and the insect. Good luck with that Shino.

The only one at the table who didn't have a relationship besides me was Hinata. She said that she still hasn't found anyone she wants to spend her life with yet. After everyone left and it was only Shikamaru, Ino, and I, they decided to talk about their relationship.

"How did you figure it out so quickly. You only saw us together once and you figured it out just like that! The others have been around us for a year since we started dating and no one had a clue about our relationship!" Ino said surprised.

She had that admiration in her eye like she did when I was in the Village. This might be a clue as to why she had a crush on me back then. I looked over at Shikamaru and saw that he let down a mask I didn't know he was wearing, and saw surprise written all over his face.

"I would like to know to." He said in that lazy tone of his. I looked from one to the other and saw that I wasn't going to get away without explaining.

"Well, Ino got really upset when I stole the only seat next to you and Choji. Then I narrowed it down when I saw you guys talking. Ino seemed happier than she ever was when she was chasing after me, and you didn't seem like your lazy self when you talked to Ino. That's how I figured it out." I explained to them. They took the explanation and took a moment to talk among themselves.

"Naruto, I calculated everything in my head a million times and never had a scenario where someone figured out we were dating. We played it out perfectly. Do you think others will notice?" Shikamaru asked me. I looked over at Ino and noticed she had a very determined look on her face.

"Well, personally I think most have already noticed the changes but just haven't brought it up because you two never mentioned it." At this, both of their faces turned into looks of understanding and resolve. They looked at each other and seemed to know what the other was thinking. They nodded to each other before turning back to me.

"We're going to tell everyone next time we meet up. That way we can clear up some confusion. I really thought my analysis was rock solid." Shikamaru said. I just shrugged in apology for finding out. But really, why am I apologizing. They left the restaurant and I soon followed.

On the way home there were definitely a lot less people on the streets, but all those who saw me addressed me as the 'Honorable son'. I just bowed back at them and headed home.

* * *

**A/N That's the end of this chapter guys!**


	8. IMPORTANT

Hey guys! I've taken an interest back in this story. I will continue it and post when I'm finished with a new chapter. For now, I'm reformatting the previous chapters so watch out for the new chapter. If you are to lazy to keep checking, just follow the story and you will get a notice when I post a new chapter.


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